Taekwondo Coventry

Taekwondo is generally a lot more demanding physically than for example Tai Chi, so unless you're pretty nimble and fit you may prefer to partake in something a little bit gentler to boost your fitness levels in Coventry. Children and younger people are certainly the perfect participants for Taekwondo classes in Coventry, with lots of fast paced movements going on and a great deal of high kicking.

With its origins in 1940's Korea, Taekwondo is certainly one of the more recently formulated of the martial arts and involves primarily high-kicking moves such as fast kicking strategies, turning/jumping kicks and head-height kicks. It started when schools called "kwans" were set up by a group of Korean martial arts specialists in Seoul, South Korea.

Taekwondo has become very popular in Coventry and all around the world, with over 60 million practitioners worldwide. This sport has even featured in the Olympic Games since 2000, and if you want to get involved, joining a local Coventry Taekwondo club or class is a good place to start. While you may not aspire to Olympic competition, there is no reason why you cannot become a master of this exciting martial art and have some fun along the way.

A key element of Taekwondo is self-defence, and undoubtedly this is one of the main reasons that individuals in Coventry get involved in classes and take up the sport. There has been a worrying escalation of violent practices in recent times and this is especially common in city and town centres throughout West Midlands and Great Britain as a whole. The beauty of Taekwondo though, is that it also teaches self-discipline and respect for other people, not such common attributes in Coventry these days.

Your newly mastered Taekwondo skills will likely never have to be tested outside of an organised Taekwondo class, however knowing that you have them will give you peace of mind.

What to Expect From Your First Class

If you haven't done Taekwondo before you may be a little concerned as to what to expect on your first class. The following will give you an example, but this could vary subject to which Coventry school you go to. A fifteen to twenty minute warm up, a bit of technical training comprising some kicks, blocking techniques, stances and hand attacks, a look at some forms (Poomse), a look at sparring including good timing, precise movement and the accurate targeting of attacks, and to finish off a warm down with muscle stretching and relaxing to prevent spasms and cramping.

If you want to sign up to a Taekwondo class in Coventry, you will also have to register with the sport's official governing body, namely British Taekwondo. By exploring British Taekwondo's official website you can read information regarding coaching courses, coaches and competition referees, equality and safeguarding, safe practices, starting a new club, events, first aid, news, clubs and members, and many more Taekwondo related issues.

Coventry Taekwondo for Beginners

It does not matter what you're standing is or who you are in the world of Taekwondo, at one stage you were a complete novice, fearing failure and knowing practically nothing. We have all started out at that point and can only learn and develop with practice. Beginner Taekwondo classes in Coventry are the right place get started on that learning journey and to pick up the basics so that you can build self-confidence and proceed with your Taekwondo adventure. Most beginner classes are created to be friendly and fun, offering a gradual introduction to the basic Taekwondo values and building a firm base for the future.

Taekwondo Safety Gear

Safety equipment such as red or blue body armour, a groin guard, a red/blue head protector, shin protectors, hand protectors, forearm protectors and a gum shield have to be worn in all competitions regulated by British Taekwondo. Protection from injury is paramount thanks to the formidable kicks that are an integral part of this sport.

Taekwondo Belts

With there being many different disciplines of Taekwondo there's never really been any standard arrangement for assigning belts (grades). What exists however is relatively similar and is made up of 2 belt groups "junior" and "senior" ("colour" and "black"), each one of these groups is split into ranks, 8 to 12 colours in the case of juniors and nine "blacks" for seniors.

In the UK there are a set of ranks (belts) in Taekwondo that are called "Kup". The lowest (beginners) rank is 10th Kup and the highest is 1st Kup. The Taekwondo belt order, just like many of the martial arts is portrayed by a range of colours, these colours are white, yellow, green, blue and red, with intermediary belts with stripes, namely white with a yellow stripe, yellow with a green stripe, green with a blue stripe, blue with a red stripe and red with a black stripe. The 10th Kup (White Belt) is what Taekwondo novices in Coventry will start out with, they'll then move up through the coloured belts, eventually attaining the Red Belt With a Black Stripe (1st Kup), which will probably take about 3-4 years of dedicated training.

Taekwondo trainees in Coventry become known as "black belt candidates" once they've successfully completed this process, and they will then need to move through a further nine ranks (Dans) if they want to achieve the supreme distinction of "Black Belt" in Taekwondo. Therefore, Junior Belt, Senior Belt and Black Belt are the three primary classifications in the Taekwondo belt order. The Taekwondo Belts in the Junior division comprise; 10th (White), 9th (White With Yellow Stripe), 8th (Yellow), and 7th (Yellow With Green Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Senior division comprise; 6th (Green), 5th (Green With Blue Stripe), 4th (Blue), 3rd ( Blue With Red Stripe), 2nd (Red), and 1st (Red With Black Stripe). The Taekwondo Belts in the Black group range from 1st to 9th Dan, a qualification process which takes a considerable number of years.

To Summarize

We can't all be like Jade Jones or Lutalo Muhammad, and I guess that we wouldn't all want to be. Taekwondo is not purely about Olympic medals and National Championships. Most of us are happy to improve our fitness levels, make new friends and meet different people, and that's exactly how it ought to be. However, as with most matters in life, what you get from it will be determined by what you put into it. Good luck!